Device for shifting pile warp threads laterally



Aug. 2, 1955 c. MORGAN 2,714,398

DEVICE FOR SHIFTING PILE WARP THREADS LATERALLY Filed Oct. 29, 1954 2Sheets$heet 1 FIG. I.

INVENTOR CLARENCE L.MORGAN BY WW ATTORNEY 5 c. L. MORGAN 2,714,398

DEVICE FOR SHIFTING FILE WARP THREADS LATERALLY Filed 001;. 29, 1954 2SheetsSheet 2 V M a |4\ l4 2,

,z 20 I f 20 20a [/l/ll/lll l INVENTOR CLARENCE L, MORGAN ATTORNEYUnited States Patent DEVICE FQR SHIFTING PILE WARP THREADS LATERALLYClarence L. Morgan, Greenville,

Mills of South Carolina, tion of South Carolina S. C., assignor toBelrug Greenville, S. (1., a corpora- My invention relates to looms andhas particular reference to means to shift the selvage edge of thefabric, at the bad selvage edge, inwardly, whereby the slack in thefilling is taken up.

In the manufacture of woven pile rugs, it is old to weave two rugs atthe same time, and the pile of the two rugs is originally integral andis severed as the weaving of the rugs progresses. In the weaving of thetwo rugs, the rugs are ordinarily arranged in superposed relation andthere are two sets of ground warps for each rug and two sets of pilewarps which are common to the two rugs. The ground warps of each rug aremanipulated by the heddles in timed order with respect to the weft ofeach rug, so that the ground is woven in the conventional manner. Thetwo sets of pile warps are manipulated to form pile warp crossings andthe pile warps are woven into the grounds and the pile warps form anoriginal pile which is integral and connects the two rugs. As the tworugs being woven are advanced, the integral pile is brought into contactwith severing means and the pile warp crossings are severed forming twoseparate rugs. In the Weaving of two rugs at the same time, with thepile warps crossings connecting the grounds of the two rugs, two shuttleboxes are arranged at the opposite ends of the lay in superposedrelation and two shuttles are picked simultaneously, to form the weftfor each rug. This procedure is conventional in the art, and isillustrated broadly in Patents 294,968; 1,524,398; 1,676,931; 1,757,555;2,152,592 and 2,391,835.

As is well known in the art, difficulty is experienced in the weaving oftwo pile rugs simultaneously, with slack at the selvage of each rug.This slack occurs at the selvage when the weft is beaten up by the reedand this slack is caused by the fact that the pile warp crossings holdthe weft spaced from the fell, adjacent to the selvage. This slack mayoccur at one or both of the selvage edges.

In accordance with my invention, I provide a device which is preferablymounted upon the lay to travel therewith. This device is operated intimed order with respect to the pick of the shuttles and it is movableto press against the selvage edges of the rugs being Woven and to shiftthese selvage edges inwardly. This occurs after the pick of the shuttleand preferably before the shuttle has traveled for more than two-thirdsof the length of its pick, but may occur any time that the shuttle is inflight. The device thus moves the selvage edges inwardly and theshuttles still exerting tension upon the weft, will retain the weftfairly taut. When the lay reaches the end of its rear travel and startsforwardly, the device is moved outwardly to disengage and become spacedfrom the selvage edges, and the reed then packs up the weft. When thedevice releases the moved in selvage dges, such selvage edges return tothe normal parallel outer positions and automatically take up any slackat the selvage edges.

In the accompanying drawings forming a part of this application and inwhich like numerals are employed to designate like parts throughoutsame,

Figure l is a plan view of the lay and associated ele- 2,714,398Patented Aug. 2, 1955 ments of a loom, showing the lay starting on itsrearward movement from the fell and the selvage edge shifting deviceretracted in the outer position,

Figure 2 is a similar view showing the lay approaching the end of itsrear stroke, the shuttle approaching the end of its pick and the selvagepressing device shifted to the inner position,

Figure 3 is a side elevation device and associated elements,

Figure 4 is a side elevation of the operating means for the selvagepressing device,

Figure 5 is a diagrammatic view of the sheds of the ground warps and thepile warps, viewed from the good selvage edges of the rugs,

Figure 6 is a similar view, viewed from the bad selvage edges, with theselvage pressing device shown in a position to engage the selvages,

Figure 7 is a diagrammatic view illustrating the forma tion of the longloop at the bad selvage, in accordance with the old practice,

Figure 8 is a similar view showing the elimination of the long loop inthe weft at the bad selvage, by the use of the selvage pressing device.

In the drawings, where for the purpose of illustration is shown apreferred embodiment of my invention, the numeral 10 designates a lay,equipped at each of its opposite ends with two shuttle boxes 11 arrangedin spaced superposed relation. There is an upper shuttle for use withthe upper pair of shuttle boxes and a lower shuttle for use with thelower pair of shuttle boxes and the shuttles are indicated at 12. Theconventional means is employed to move the lay, and conventional pickersticks and operating means for the picker sticks are employed, to pickthe shuttles as indicated in said patents.

The numeral 13 designates upper and lower rugs being woven, and whichare being fed to the right, Figures 5 and 6, during the weavingoperation. In Figures 5 and 6, the numerals 14 and 15 designate theground warps of the upper and lower rugs and 16 and 17 designate thepile warp forming crossings 18, which cross each other at 1.9, and crossthe ground warps at Zll and 21'. The wefts are designated by the numeral20 in the woven. rugs, and 21 designates the integral pile connectingthe woven rugs before the integral pile is severed to form the completerugs.

I provide a selvage edge pressing device to move the selvage edges orthe selvage ground warps inwardly. This selvagepressing device comprisesa reciprocatory rod 22, which is square in cross section and is slidablewithin guides 23 rigidly mounted upon the lay it). This rod cannot turnupon its longitudinal axis and moves longitudinally and is automaticallymoved outwardly by a compressible coil spring 24. Rigidly secured to therod 22 is a vertical selvage pressing device or rod 25, projecting abovethe rod 22, and arranged to engage the selvage edges of the two rugs orthe selvage ground warps. When the rod 22 is held in the outer positionby the spring 24, the selvage pressing device 25 is slightly spaced fromthe selvage edges.

The rod 22 is moved inwardly by a flexible element or cable 26 passedabout a pulley 27 mounted upon the lay 10. This cable 26 extendsdownwardly and is connected vsu'th one end of a vertically swinginglever 28, pivoted at 29, and carrying a cam block 30, to be operated bya roller 31, carried by a crank 32, mounted upon a pick shaft 33, whichextends longitudinally of the lay, as is customary. When the roller 31is turned counter-clockwise, Figure 4, it passes over the cam anddepresses the lever 28.

The operation is as follows:

Viewed from the bad selvage edges of the rugs, which would be the leftends of Figures 1 to 3, and also Figure 6, the heddles have shifted theground warps 14 of the selvage pressing 3 and so that they make the nextcross, and the heddles have shifted the pile warps 16 and 17 so thatthey make the next cross with each other and also cross the pile warps14 and 15, Figure 6. Figure 6 shows the relative positions of the groundwarps and the pile warps and their sheds, at the time that the shuttles12 enter the sheds, at the bad selvage edges. With the warps arranged asshown in Figure 6, the lay is moving rearwardly from the fell, and whenthe lay moves rearwardly for about two-thirds of its travel, the pick ofthe shuttles occurs. This places the weft 20 near the crossing points 20and 21' at the bad selvage edges and spaced a considerable distance fromthe fell. If this is not corrected, improper slack will occur at theselvage edge. This arrangement, see more particularly Figure 7 producesa weft portion Ztia and When the reed heats up the weft, it will producea loop 2012, extending outwardly beyond the selvage, and it is this loopwhich produces the improper slack. The roller 31 1s timed in operationwith respect to the pick of the loom, and shortly after the pick hasbeen made and the shuttles are in the sheds, this roller will engage thecam block and force the cam block downwardly. The downward movement ofthe cam block will swing the lever 28 downwardly and the downwardmovement of the lever pulls the cable 26, which shifts the rod 22inwardly toward the selvage edges. The rod 22 now moves the selvage edgepressing device 25 inwardly into engagement with the selvage edges ofthe rugs or the selvage warp threads, moving the same inwardly for aconsiderable distance. The parts are so timed in operation that the rod22 is moved inwardly and shifts the pressing device 25 inwardly to movethe selvage edges or selvage edge ground warps inwardly to the fullestextent, before and about the time that the shuttle travels two-thirds ofits stroke from the bad selvage edges. The shuttle is therefore stillplacing the weft under tension and this will draw the weft close to theselvage at the point adjacent to the pressing device 25. The pressingdevice 25 will remain in the inner or projected position until the layreaches the rearmost position from the lay and when the lay movesforwardly from the rearmost position for about two-thirds of its stroke,the roller will disengage the cam block, and the spring 24 will rapidlyreturn the bar and pressing element 25 to the outer or retractedposition. The pressing device 25 is moved out of contact with theselvage edge warps and out of the path of travel of the fabric, beforethe reed nears the fell, and the pressing device 25 cannot be moved intocontact with the fell, when the reed packs up the fell.

The shuttles 12 having been thrown from the bad selvage edges to thegood selvage edges, the shuttles are caught in the shuttle boxes at thegood selvage edges, and when in such shuttle boxes, the heddles areoperated to cross the ground warps 14 and 15, Figure 5, and the heddleshave started to cross the pile warps 16 and 17, and the heddles areweaving the pile warps in the grounds of the rugs or fabrics, whichholds the pile warps substantially parallel, Figure 5, and when theshuttles are again picked, the shuttles travel from the good selvageedges to the bad selvage edges. Since the pile warps 16 and 17 are notnow crossing, they do not hold the weft spaced from the fell, and hencethe weft will be close to the fell when the shuttles are picked and whenthe reed beats up the weft, undue slack at the good selvage edges willnot occur. After the shuttles reach the shuttle boxes at the bad selvageedges, the completion of the crossing of the pile warps 16 and 17 ismade, and the ground warps are again crossed, Figures 5 and 6. It isthus seen that the ground warps are crossed for each pick, while thepile warps are crossed for each alternate pick. Upon the next pick, theshuttles again move from the bad selvage edges to the good selvageedges, and the pressing device 25 again shifts the selvage edges orselvage edge warps inwardly, and the operation is repeated, and thecomplete cycle of operation continued.

While I have described the invention for use in weaving pile rugs, forthe purpose of illustration, I also contemplate using the same for theweaving of any pile fabric, such as plush. The device may also be usedin connection with the weaving of a single pile fabric.

It is to be understood that the form of my invention herewith shown anddescribed is to be taken as a preferred example of the same and thatvarious changes in the shape, size and arrangement of parts may beresorted to, without departing from the spirit of the invention or thescope of the subjoined claims.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1. A device for use in connection with a loom for weaving two pilefabrics including ground warps and pile warp crossings connecting thefabrics, said loom including a lay, a pressing device mounted upon thelay and arranged near the selvage edges of the fabrics and movabletransversely of the fabrics toward and from the selvage edges, saiddevice including contact means arranged exteriorly of the sheds andexteriorly of the selvage edges, and means to move the pressing deviceinwardly and transversely of the fabrics so that the contact meansengages the exterior of the selvage edges and forces them inwardlybeyond the normal position so that the ground warps are bent inwardlyand the fabrics have a reduced width when the pressing device is holdingthe selvage edges in the transverse inner position.

2. A device for use in connection with a loom for weaving two pilefabrics including ground warps and pile warp crossings connecting thefabrics, said loom comprising a lay, a supporting member mounted uponthe lay and movable longitudinally thereof, a pressing device mountedupon the supporting member and arranged near and exteriorly of theselvage edges of the fabrics and exteriorly of the sheds, and means tomove the supporting member inwardly toward the fabrics and to cause thepressing device to engage the exterior of the selvage edges and forcethem inwardly beyond the normal position so that the ground warps arebent inwardly and the fabrics have a reduced width when the pressingdevice is holding the selvage edges in the transverse inner position.

3. A device for use in connection with a loom for weaving two pilefabrics including ground warps and pile warp crossings connecting thefabrics, said loom including a lay, a supporting member mounted upon thelay to move longitudinally thereof, a pressing device mounted upon thesupporting member and arranged near and exteriorly of the selvage edgesof the fabrics and exteriorly of the sheds, a spring to move thesupporting member outwardly, and means timed in operation with respectto the movement of the shuttle to shift the supporting me ber inwardlytoward the fabrics and to cause the pressing device to engage theexterior of the selvage edges and force them inwardly beyond the normalposition so that the ground warps are bent inwardly and the fabrics havea reduced width when the pressing device is holding the selvage edges inthe transverse inner position.

4. A device for use in connection with a loom for weaving two pilefabrics including ground warps and pile warp crossings connecting thefabrics, said device comprising a member movable transversely of theselvage edges of said fabrics, means for supporting the member, apressing element carried by the member and having contacting partsarranged exteriorly of the selvage edges and exteriorly of the sheds,said pressing element when shifted toward the selvage edges causing thecontacting parts to engage the exterior of the selvage edges and forcethem inwardly beyond the normal position so that the ground warps arebent inwardly and the fabrics have a reduced width when the contactingparts are holding the selvage edges in the transverse inner position,and means to move the member in opposite directions.

5. A device for use in connection with a loom for weaving two pilefabrics including ground warps and pile warp crossings connecting thefabrics, said device comprising a member movable transversely of theselvage edges of the fabric and having contacting parts arrangedexteriorly of the selvage edges and exteriorly of the sheds, means forsupporting the member, a spring to move the member outwardly withrelation to the selvage edges, a pivoted lever, connecting means betweenthe pivoted lever and member, a cam carried by the pivoted lever, andmeans operated by the pick shaft of the loom to engage the cam elementand move the lever, the arrangement being such that the movement of thelever is timed with respect to the pick of the shuttles, the inwardmovement of the member toward the selvage edges causes the contactingparts to engage the exterior of the selvage edges and move the selvageedges inwardly beyond the normal position whereby the ground warps arebent inwardly and the width of the fabrics reduced.

6. A device for use in connection with a loom for weaving two pilefabrics including ground warps and pile warp crossings connecting thefabrics, said loom including a lay, a pressing device mounted upon thelay and having contacting parts arranged exteriorly of the selvage edgesof the fabrics and exteriorly of the sheds, said pressing device beingmovable transversely of the selvage edges, and means to move saidpressing device inwardly toward the selvage edges so that saidcontacting parts engage the 30 exterior of the selvage edges and movethem inwardly beyond their normal position to reduce the width of thefabrics.

7. The combination with a loom including a lay, of a pressing devicemounted upon the lay and arranged near the selvage edge of the fabricbeing Woven upon the loom, said pressing device having a contacting facearranged exteriorly of the selvage edge and exteriorly of the shed, andmeans to move the device inwardly so that the contacting face engagesthe exterior of the selvage edge and moves the selvage edge inwardlybeyond the normal position to shorten the width of the fabric.

8. The combination of a loom, of a pressing device arranged near theselvage edge of the fabric being woven upon the loom and including acontacting face arranged exteriorly of the selvage edge and exteriorlyof the shed, and means for supporting the pressing device and moving thesame inwardly toward the selvage edge and causing the contacting face tobear against the exterior of the selvage edge and move the selvage edgeinwardly beyond its normal position to shorten the width of the fabric.

9. The method of weaving comprising, supporting and manipulating groundwarps and wefts for producing the fabric, and exerting an inwardpressure upon the exterior of the selvage edge of the fabric to movesuch selvage edge inwardly beyond the normal position to shorten thewidth of the fabric, and applying such inward pressure to the selvageedge during at least a portion of the travel of the shuttle.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS2,152,592 Hardiman Mar. 28, 1939

